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This month, Mary Schapiro will leave her post as Securities and Exchange Commission chairman. Replacing her will be Commissioner Elisse Walter.

What's the most important thing the new SEC chairman should tackle?

Ted Kaufman

Former Democratic senator from Delaware "[She] should get back to basics and commit to assuring that our present market structure is designed to raise capital to invest, create jobs, and grow, and is attracting and serving long-term investors to help facilitate the capital-formation process."

Ted Weisberg

President, Seaport Securities "Re-establish the credibility of the U.S. securities markets by immediately reintroducing the 'short-sale rule' or 'tick' rule. Second, establish nickel ($0.05) spreads to revive dealer interest in our markets. And third, but not last, eliminate 'dark pools' and 'internalization' in an effort to bring transparency back."

Tim Ryan

President and CEO of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association "The SEC will need to continue to focus on working through Dodd-Frank rule-making."

Dennis Kelleher

President and CEO of Better Markets "[She] must get serious about regulating high-frequency trading, payment for order flows, abusive practices, consolidated audit trails, and market transparency."

Last Week: Review

Closer to the Cliff

The impasse over averting the fiscal cliff of budget cuts and higher taxes hardened, with President Barack Obama calling for a $1.6 trillion tax increase, $50 billion in infrastructure spending and new power to raise the federal debt limit, proposals the Republicans rejected. House Speaker John Boehner said that two weeks of talks had yielded "no substantive progress" toward a solution.

Wiggle Room?

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell told The Wall Street Journal that Republicans might consider raising tax revenue—but only from limiting deductions and not from higher rates—if the White House agrees to higher Medicare premiums for the wealthy, raising the Medicare eligibility age, and slowing cost-of-living increases for programs like Social Security.

Warning for SAC Capital

SAC Capital said the SEC has warned the hedge fund that it may face civil charges over an alleged insider-trading scheme that led to an arrest of a former portfolio manager. An SAC spokesman declined to comment on the SEC's warning, but said founder Steven Cohen and the firm "will continue to cooperate" with the government's inquiry.

Recession Risk

The global economy faces another contraction if policy makers don't resolve their fiscal problems. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) urged central banks in the euro zone, Japan, China, and India to further stimulate their economies.

Eye on Bonds

New York Fed President William Dudley signaled support for additional asset purchases by the U.S. central bank next year, saying that recent job-growth improvements aren't enough to materially change the labor market. Treasuries rallied in November on that prospect and on the fiscal cliff stalemate.

To the Rescue

Germany lawmakers approved new aid measures for Greece, clinching support for a plan to close an $18.17 billion gap in Greece's finances.

Revolution Redux?

Egypt seemed headed toward a violent confrontation between President Mohammed Morsi's ruling Islamist party and the opposition. Protesters vowed to bring down a draft constitution approved by allies of Morsi, who gave himself sweeping powers. Separately, the U.N. General Assembly recognized the Palestinian territories as a "nonmember observer state" over strong opposition from the U.S. and Israel.

Better Trend

Economic growth as measured by GDP was revised higher, to 2.7% in the third quarter. But the data don't point to much momentum in underlying demand, said Deutsche Bank chief economist, Joseph LaVorgna.

In Brief

• Detroit faces state management or bankruptcy to avoid default.

• Continental Airlines was cleared of criminal charges tied to a crash.